[SOLVED]How to test for SwitchLinc 2-Wire Dimmer failure

I have 6 SwitchLinc 2-Wire Dimmer switches that have been working in my house over the past couple yeasrs. I purchased 3 extra devices a ‘backups’ should a switch fail. It’s not like you can walk down to the local hardware store and find Insteon devices where I live.

I had a SwitchLinc 2-Wire Dimmer switch at the top of my basement stairs that has worked fine for a little less than 2 years. Click the switch and the light at the bottom of the steps went on. It was linked to a couple other basement SwitchLinc 2-Wire Dimmer switches that would turn on other lights in the area. Worked great. The other day, the switch at the top of the steps failed. Not sure why. No lights on the switch and it did not respond to Indigo. Other switches in the basement continued to work fine.

I tried 2 of the spare switches and....nothing. They didn’t even light up. The third switch ‘lights up’ and can be seen in Indigo, but it will not turn on the basement stairs light as the old unit did. Everything is wired same as before. Through Indigo, this switch does pass on commands to the other basement switches. Odd. It’s a simple 2-wire hook up. What else should I be looking for?

This got me looking in my garage. I have a couple rather large boxes of Insteon devices of all types (from motion sensors to switches to appliance links, etc.). All had failed at one point in time. Quite an investment. The common denominator is that the units failed and I have no idea why. Many were likely under warranty, but it’s not like I was closely tracking that. Product quality isn’t what it should be.

The SwitchLinc 2-Wire Dimmer swithes are particularly a disappointment. How does one know - out of the box- or after use, if they work as expected. I can do all kinds of things to troubleshoot our vehicles, but Insteon devices are ‘black boxes’ to me.

I discovered I had another SwitchLinc 2-Wire Dimmer switch stored in the garage. I wired it into place...and it worked. The other units were all defective in one manner or another. Indigo has been ROCK SOLID. I just wish the hardware was as robust.

[matt (support)]

I wonder if all your malfunctioned 2-Wires were from a bad batch or something.

Definitely contact Smarthome. They should have a 2 year warranty and I think they are pretty good about warranty returns.